The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has apprehended a 55-year-old drug kingpin, Mohammed Ali Abubakar, also known as Bello Karama, along with five members of a criminal syndicate operating at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) in Kano. This significant arrest follows the discovery that the syndicate was responsible for shipping illicit substances, which led to the detention of three innocent Nigerian pilgrims in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on allegations of drug trafficking.

The revelations were made during a press conference held at the NDLEA National Headquarters in Abuja on Monday, August 25, 2025. Key agency officials, including the Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi; the Director of Assets and Financial Investigation, Abdul Ibrahim; and the Director of Prosecution and Legal Services, Theresa Asuquo, addressed the media. The investigation was initiated after NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), received complaints from three Nigerian families whose members were detained in Saudi Arabia after their lesser hajj pilgrimage.

The three Nigerians detained in Saudi Arabia have been identified as Mrs. Maryam Hussain Abdullahi, Mrs. Abdullahi Bahijja Aminu, and Mr. Abdulhamid Saddiq. They boarded Ethiopian Airline flight ET940, which departed Kano on August 6, 2025, en route to Jeddah via Addis Ababa. Unbeknownst to them, six additional bags, not belonging to them, were tagged to their names. Three of these bags were subsequently found to contain illicit drugs.

Mrs. Maryam Hussain Abdullahi, for instance, had checked in only one piece of luggage weighing 9 kilograms on August 6, 2025, which did not arrive with her in Jeddah. Her husband was informed of its arrival only on August 16, a day before their scheduled departure from Jeddah on August 17. Following the discovery of the implicated bags, she was detained and remains in custody. The cases of the other two pilgrims followed a similar pattern and were reported to the agency shortly after Mrs. Abdullahi's complaint.

The NDLEA's swift investigation uncovered that the bags containing illicit drug substances intercepted in Saudi Arabia were deliberately checked in against the complainants' names by members of the criminal syndicate operating at MAKIA, entirely without the knowledge or consent of the three innocent pilgrims. All these bags were traced back to Mohammed Ali Abubakar (aka Bello Karama), the leader of the syndicate. Intriguingly, while Abubakar checked the contaminated bags onto the Ethiopian Airline flight on August 6, 2025, the same day the pilgrims traveled, he himself boarded an Egypt Air flight to Jeddah, avoiding travel with the illicit consignment.

Further investigation revealed that staff members of Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO), who were also part of the criminal syndicate, were instrumental in secretly tagging and checking in the bags to the names of the three complainants. This illicit tagging led directly to the pilgrims' arrest and detention for crimes they had no knowledge of. The NDLEA has unequivocally stated that Mrs. Maryam Abdullahi and the other two individuals are victims of circumstance, having been implicated by the elaborate activities of this criminal network.

Currently, six members of the syndicate are in NDLEA custody, with four already charged to court awaiting arraignment. These include Mohammed Ali Abubakar (aka Bello Karama), Abdulbasit Adamu, Murtala Akande Olalekan, and Celestina Emmanuel Yayock. Confessional statements have been obtained; Ali Abubakar admitted bringing in seven pieces of luggage, while Celestina confessed to checking in two of them for a fee of N100,000. Another suspect, Jazuli Kabir, admitted to checking in two other bags for the same fee. Receipts for the transfer of N200,000 from Ali to Celestina, who then transferred N100,000 to Jazuli, corroborate these statements, while Ali traveled with the remaining three bags via Egypt Air.

Based on these findings, the NDLEA is actively engaging with the General Directorate of Narcotics Control (GDNC) in Saudi Arabia to ensure the exoneration of the three innocent Nigerians. The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), is attending an International Drug Conference where he plans to meet directly with a GDNC delegation to present the NDLEA's findings and seek their cooperation. He has also expressed readiness to travel to Saudi Arabia personally, if necessary, to pursue justice for the stranded Nigerians, assuring that Nigeria will never abandon its citizens, especially when the facts clearly demonstrate their innocence.

The agency reaffirmed its commitment to combating substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking across the country, emphasizing that while no one is above the law in its enforcement duties, it will not allow innocent individuals to be punished for crimes they did not commit. The NDLEA also extended its appreciation to the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, the Managing Director of FAAN, the AVSEC, and the DSS for their collaboration on this case and for implementing interim measures at MAKIA to prevent similar incidents in the future.